Chapter 538

Encounter

Although it’s impossible to assassinate two White Chalk individuals at once, taking down several smaller targets was relatively easy. Despite expending 2 “Cup” and 2 “Stone” worth of spirituality to use the bl**d-Eating Sigil and Flowing Electricity form during this operation, she did manage to acquire some sigils and spirituality storage items. Besides several standard bl**d-Eating Sigils possessed by “Cup” cultists, there were also a few sigils she couldn’t identify. Dorothy planned to carefully appraise them once they docked.

‘Seven Sea-Dwelling Cult zombie puppets… one of which seems quite important… It’s enough for tomorrow’s plan.’

Dorothy thought to herself while looking out the window at the dark sea, then continued her musings.

‘It’s getting closer… closer. If my calculations are correct, I should be able to see them on the horizon around ten thirty in the morning…

The time is drawing near; I’ll have to put in some extra work and prepare. If everything goes smoothly, tomorrow will be when I finally escape this ship and these people’s control.’

Dorothy pondered this as she recalled how earlier that day, she had used a flying insect zombie puppet along with the subtle Flowing Electricity form to secretly tamper with the compass on the Shining White Pearl, causing the entire ship to veer off course in another direction.

In an era without satellite navigation, navigating at sea primarily relied on charts, compasses, and astronomical observations. For navigators, observing the sun, moon, and stars in the sky could not only determine direction but also help pinpoint their location using instruments. However, in cloudy weather, astronomical navigation became difficult, so ships had to rely solely on charts and compasses. The compass could be influenced by Dorothy’s abilities.

By manipulating the compass, Dorothy covertly controlled the Shining White Pearl’s course. Although this method was effective, it required favorable weather conditions. Therefore, she didn’t use this tactic from the start but waited until the morning when the weather was suitable.

Under Dorothy’s control, the Shining White Pearl was not heading toward White Tear Island but toward the Radiant Church’s pilgrimage fleet, expected to meet tomorrow morning.

Relying on the church fleet, Dorothy could easily rid the Shining White Pearl of its cultists. However, her expression remained grim.

‘Relying on the Radiant Church’s pilgrimage fleet to escape these people is a good idea, but it carries significant risks. These risks don’t come from the Sea-Dwelling Cult members but from the church itself…

In a sense, before the church, I am just as much an unofficial suspicious Extraordinary Being as the Sea-Dwelling Cult. If the church knew that the ship had a large number of Sea-Dwelling Cult members involved in a serious Extraordinary Event, they would undoubtedly conduct high-intensity Extraordinary Detection on everyone aboard to ensure everyone’s safety.

Conducting comprehensive, high-intensity Extraordinary Detection on 2,700 people to find all Extraordinary Beings and traces would consume a massive amount of ‘Lamp’ spirituality. Although the Sea-Dwelling Cult cannot afford such a cost, the church definitely can.

According to Vania, the escort fleet consists of the third pilgrimage fleet of the Order of the Holy Ceremony Knights, comprising six warships and three passenger ships carrying pilgrims, totaling nine ships full of church personnel, including a large number of military personnel like the knights. How many ‘Lamp’ Extraordinary Beings might be among them?

If the church determines that the Shining White Pearl is involved in serious cult activities, the entire ship would undergo ultra-high-intensity Extraordinary Detection. Even with 2,700 people, the church’s power could detect every single one. At that point, not only would Costa and others be exposed, but Neve and I wouldn’t be able to hide either. If the church truly decides to investigate, my limited ‘Shadow’ would be completely inadequate.

Therefore, tomorrow I won’t just face Costa and the others; I’ll also be dealing with the church… What I need is to exploit them without raising suspicion. This requires more precise manipulation; otherwise, both Costa and I would be exposed…’

Dorothy thought, feeling both anticipation and tension about the approaching church fleet. She needed to use the church’s strength, yet she understood that compared to the An Yin Bureau, using the church’s power was far more dangerous. She had to proceed with caution.

…

Time passed quickly, and soon a night had gone by. As dawn approached and the darkness faded, the Shining White Pearl continued sailing across the vast sea.

Under the still overcast sky, on the front deck where sea winds blew, Captain Costa stood in the wind, gazing at the distant horizon. Beside him, Massimo, dressed in a suit, also stared into the distance. They were both Auxiliary “Lamp” Extraordinary Beings and thus didn’t need binoculars to see far.

“According to our journey, we should reach White Tear Island by tonight… I’ve already informed the other side through the Sensory Platform about specific matters. They asked us to think about how we will face Sword Scale’s anger later…”

Looking at the distant scene, Massimo said with unease, and Costa replied silently.

“We should think about it… After all, this situation is what we deserve… Hmph, but we should stay optimistic. At least, once we reach White Tear Island, we can catch that thief. Then we can retaliate against Sword Scale tenfold.”

Costa responded to Massimo, who smiled slightly and was about to say more when he suddenly widened his eyes and looked at the sea horizon in the distance.

“Hold on… What’s that over there? There seems to be a fleet? And it’s quite large?”

“A fleet? Are you seeing things? We’re so far off the normal route, how could there be a fleet?” Costa said, then looked in the direction Massimo was pointing and froze in place.

In Costa’s view, he could clearly see several plumes of black smoke rising from the distant horizon. Below those plumes was a fleet moving steadily.

Seeing the fleet, Costa frowned because, at their current position, encountering a fleet of this scale was unlikely. He initially thought it might be a mirage, so he squinted and focused his ability to look more closely. When he saw the deep gunports and the Radiant flag flying high on the ships, he was shocked.

“Yes… Yes… It’s the Radiant Deity Follower’s fleet! How could they be here!”

Taking two steps back, Costa’s face turned pale as he exclaimed in shock. Beside him, Massimo, hearing this, also focused his ability to look at the distant target, nearly falling over in fright upon seeing it clearly.

“Oh… That’s… That’s the cruiser of the Order of the Holy Ceremony Knights! How is this possible! How could the knights’ fleet be here!?”

Massimo said in horror, his face drained of color and unsure what to do. Meanwhile, Costa quickly calmed down and turned to order his crew.

“Notify the bridge! Full left rudder, get away from that fleet!”

“BOOM!!”

Just as Costa finished speaking, a loud explosion echoed from the lower decks of the Shining White Pearl, causing the entire ship to shake violently.